When is the Best Time for Safari?

The annual migration of wildebeest and zebra in Kenya and Tanzania has been properly called one of the last great migrations on earth.  It takes place each year beginning in the Ngorogoro area of the southern Serengeti of Tanzania.  It’s determined by the availability of grazing and generally starts around February (although being driven by natural events, the exact timing can vary).  The Great Wildebeest migration is one of the principal reasons people go on safari holidays in the first place, and the sight of thousands of tons of animals on the move is truly inspiring.

Going on safari in January to March will allow you to witness the calving season for the plains grazers.  Calving   begins when there is plenty of rain ripened grass available for the ½ million zebra and as many as 1.8 million wildebeest.  February is when the great wildebeest herds tend to give birth to around 500,000 calves within a precise 2- 3 week period.

Safaris in March, April and May will catch the herds beginning to sweep west and north towards the long grass plains and woodlands of the Serengeti’s western corridor.  Some swing further west than others who head northwest before meeting up again in the Masai Mara in Kenya. By the end of May the rains dwindle and the rutting season begins when males are in their prime condition. June to July is a transitional period between the rains and the dry season and the herds reform and push further north towards the Masai Mara.  If you time your safari for this period, you could witness this final push north, massing along the banks of the swollen Mara River, producing one of the world’s truly spectacular sights.

If you take a safari holiday between July and October, you’ll still see huge herds of wildebeest in the Masai Mara, grazing the lush green grasses that the earlier rains encouraged. October to November is when short rains begin to fall in the south and east Serengeti, so the herds start to leave the Masai Mara, crossing the Mara River again, heading  slowly back to the Serengeti’s eastern plains.

This entry was posted on Monday, August 10th, 2009 at 12:22 pm and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.